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Samus Aran (character)
Samus Aran (サムス・アラン Samusu Aran?) is an intergalactic bounty hunter and the protagonist of the Metroid series. Orphaned during a Space Pirate raid on her home of K-2L, Samus was adopted by the mysterious Chozo and taken to Zebes, where she was infused with their DNA and raised to become a warrior. Once she reached adulthood, Samus joined the Federation Police and served under the Commanding Officer Adam Malkovich. Though she ultimately left to become a Bounty Hunter, she was nonetheless hired by the Galactic Federation on many occasions. Equipped with her cybernetic Power Suit, Samus has become famous for accomplishing missions previously thought impossible. Her most renowned achievements are the destruction of the Space Piratebase on Zebes, her role in ending the Galactic Phazon crisis, her extermination of the Metroid species, and her disobedience of orders at the Biologic Space Laboratories research station where she chose to destroy the deadly X Parasites rather than turn them over to the Galactic Federation. Samus broke ground early in the gaming world when she debuted in the 1986 game Metroid. Originally players were under the impression that Samus was a male, as even the instruction booklet suggested this. However, completing Metroid in under five hours revealed Samus to be a young woman.3 Although Samus wears the Power Suit throughout most of the Metroid series, she traditionally removes it at the end of most games, often as a result of satisfying certain conditions such as completing the game quickly or with a high percentage of the game's items collected or even both. Biography A fictional "Second Office of Trentesse" organization, mentioned in the Japanese Nintendo Official Guide Book for Super Metroid, features a short profile of Samus. Personality and portrayal Samus' personality has never been explored in-depth within the context of the games, a conscious decision by Nintendo to help the player imagine themselves better as the in-game character. However, Metroid Fusion, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, and Metroid: Other M are perhaps the most notable games in the series to give insight into Samus' personality, as well as other media formats such as comics and manga. Prior to Metroid: Other M, her voice would only be represented by text at the beginning narration, as well as throughout Metroid Fusion. Typically, Samus is depicted as a melancholic, heroic loner of few words. Despite her great achievements, she remains lonely and brooding, and seeks revenge against the Space Pirates - especially Ridley, who was personally respon''sible for the death of her mother. Despite her tragic origins, Samus has been shown to have unparalleled willpower and resourcefulness, succeeding where thousands failed and stopping at nothing to save the galaxy from any threat that may arise. Such is Samus' determination that she was even willing to sacrifice herself to prevent the spread of the body-snatching X Parasites. Despite her reputation for destroying even the deadliest of foes, Samus is also known for her compassion, and has consistently stood up to protect the helpless and downtrodden. Two notable instances of this were when she volunteered to single-handedly save the Luminoth race from the brink of extinction, and when she helped innocent Etecoons and a Dachora escape a self-destructing Zebes. In Metroid II, Samus also bonded with a Metroid who was born in front of her eyes, and decided to spare it, possibly recalling her three-year-old self during the attack on K-2L. It later sacrificed itself at the end of Super Metroid to save Samus, leaving her heartbroken and emotionally scarred for some time, as shown in Metroid: Other M. Witnessing her mother's death at Ridley's hands left Samus with posttraumatic stress disorder, which manifested as a severe panic attack upon her first encounter with Ridley in adolescence. She appears to have since learned to cope with this trauma, as she has rarely hesitated to do battle with her hated nemesis since then: Upon learning that he had survived their first battle on Zebes, Samus expressed only anger and wasted no time rushing to her Gunship and chasing Ridley all the way down to the planet Tallon IV. Samus' PTSD resurfaced a second time when she encountered a cloned Ridley on the BOTTLE SHIP during the events of Metroid: Other M - a period of time in which Samus was already emotionally vulnerable following the death of the Metroid hatchling and the destruction of her childhood home of Zebes. During the events of Metroid: Other M, Samus was depicted as going through a period of severe self-doubt after the destruction of her childhood home and the death of the Metroid hatchling. During this time, her behavior was more passive, less self-reliant, being uncharacteristically dependent on Adam Malkovich when she joined him and his platoonin investigating the BOTTLE SHIP, despite later stating that she dislikes the very idea of taking orders from a commanding officer. Her PTSD regarding Ridley also resurfaced during this mission, to the point that she could barely communicate when attacked by his clone, and could not regain her composure until Anthony Higgs was apparently killed trying to defend her. Other M's depiction of Samus has garnered significant criticism for being perceived as inconsistent with her depictions in all other games, as well as the questionable implications of her submissive behavior and interactions with Adam during the game's events. However, Other M is the only time these traits have been observed; by the time of the events of Metroid Fusion, which takes place after Other M, Samus is once again portrayed as self-reliant and strong-willed, if somewhat more introspective. Age Samus' precise age has never been revealed, with the Japanese Prime site even stating that her age is unknown. Other M concept art reveals that in her early years of around the time of the K-2L attack, that she is "4-6 years old,"4contradicting early media saying it happened when she was three, and in her Federation military period, she is "15-17 years old." In Other Media In licensed Metroid material outside of the games, Samus’s personality is largely left up to the writer in question. As such, her personality has varied considerably between major publications. The Magazine Zmanga depicts her as suffering from childhood trauma and often thinking heavily about her role and the role of the Pirates. In the Captain N: The Game Master comics, Samus is depicted as brash and money-hungry (as just about any bounty hunter would be), though she is willing to compete fairly with Princess Lana for the protagonist Kevin Keene’s feelings, suggesting her behavior is something of a "tough-guy" act. While Samus does not have royal heritage in any of the games, she was depicted as the queen of Garbage World in A King of Shreds and Patches in Captain N, and Anthony Higgs gives her the nickname "Princess" in Metroid: Other M (although in concept artwork James Pierce says "Heey, Princess!" likely referring to Samus). Non-canonically, she is also depicted sitting on the throne in the King ConanDiorama in Corruption. This would seem to indicate that she became an empress to the Reptilicus, although this is never depicted in-game. Physical appearance Samus Aran is a human. According to the ''Super Metroid Players' Guide, she is 6 feet 3 inches tall (roughly 190 cm) and weighs 198 pounds (roughly 90 kilograms); however, the manual of Metroid II: Return of Samus attributes these measurements to her Power Suit instead.6 Physically, her body is quite lean under the armor, though her observed superhuman abilities may be accountable to her muscle/bone density given her hybrid genetics and augmentations. Underneath the helmet, Samus has green-tinged blue eyes, light skin, and typically wears her blond hair in a modified ponytail with a red headband, with a lock on either side. The exact hairstyle, however, can vary from game to game. Samus's appearance varied widely in the early games. In the original Metroid, her hair was miscolored brown, though it would turn green once the player acquired the Varia Suit. If Metroid II: Return of Samus was played with a Super Game Boy, Game Boy Player or Game Boy Advance, her hair would be miscolored red. It wasn't until Super Metroid that she officially became blond, although the non-canon comic colored her hair purple. In addition, the gamebook Metroid: Zebes Invasion Order depicted her hair color as largely being black. Similarly, Samus's Hairstyle has varied in the early games and other media. In the original Metroid, her hairstyle was depicted as wavy and reaching just beyond her shoulder blades in the ending, while in Metroid II and Super Metroid, it was depicted as straight with a part on the left side of her forehead and bangs, respectively, with the former only reaching her neck and the latter reaching her shoulders. In Fusion, she has two bangs, one of which partially covers her left eye slightly, and is depicted as long enough to reach down her back. In addition, in Zebes Invasion Order, Samus's hair, similar to Fusion was depicted as long enough to reach down her back. Samus's signature hairstyle debuted in Metroid: Zero Mission, and has been present in every Metroid game released since. The only exception is Metroid Prime Hunters which, though it retained Samus's ponytail, lacked the two locks of hair on each side of her head. Previously, Samus had been depicted with a ponytail in Metroid Prime and (briefly) at the end of Metroid II and Super Metroid. Samus's face structure has also varied between games. Metroid II, Super Metroid, and Metroid Fusion gave her a wider face and larger eyes than later incarnations. In particular, her appearance for Super Metroid is stated to be based on American actress Kim Basinger. In Metroid Prime, her jaw was squarer, her eyes deeper-set and her lips more defined. Zero Mission gave her higher cheekbones and a thinner face than previous installments, and that template has been the basis for every game since. Echoes' incarnation is possibly her most panned appearance, due to the in-game model suffering from the uncanny valley. Prime Hunters, on the other hand, gave Samus a face that appeared to be a blend of Zero Mission's and Prime's depiction. Samus retained the deep-set eyes, traditional ponytail, and fuller face from Prime, but also had Zero Mission's higher cheekbones. Corruption's is closer to that of Zero Mission, with a thinner, more stylized face. In other media, such as Zebes Invasion Order, Samus's face was rendered with a similar design to various Japanese anime, such as Speed Racer. On the other hand, Metroid: Other M is perhaps the largest change Samus has ever had to her appearance since Zero Mission. She is depicted for the first time with short hair. While her adult appearance still gives her a ponytail, the two locks on either side of her head have been heavily reduced in size, her bangs have been altered and her ponytail has been moved to the nape of the neck. She also has the beauty mark that Yoshio Sakamoto alluded to in the Super Metroid developer interview, under the left side of her lip. A mole was marked in concept art for Metroid Prime, but was not added to the model. Before the credits, Samus is briefly depicted with her hair down, the first instance of this in 3-D. With her hair down, she has locks of hair hanging over her shoulders. After Anthony steps in, the lock over her right shoulder is no longer there. She then ties her hair back into her ponytail, mirroring the scenes in Metroid II and Super Metroid where she unties the ponytail. A development screenshot pictured her young appearance with black hair. Powers and abilities Samus Aran's infusion with Chozo DNA, as well as her warrior training since her childhood, has turned her into a superior athlete. Her training began at the age of 3 and continued up until she was 14 years old. As a result of the Chozo’s influence, Samus is capable of running and jumping heights far past normal human ability, as well as surviving falls that would otherwise kill an ordinary human. Samus is also more adaptive to foreign alien environments that normal humans cannot survive in, such as the majority of Zebes and Elysia. Samus also demonstrates good sharpshooting skills. She is an excellent marksman, with incredible aim, and is tremendously deadly in combat. She exhibits prodigious puzzle-solving and hacking skills. She also possesses a lithe figure that allows her to crawl through tunnels and gaps that would normally require usage of the Morph Ball. All of these are, of course, augmented further by her Power Suit. If need be, Samus will engage in melee combat, often using kicks and wrestling tactics to weaken her foe for a point-blank shot. The extent of Samus’ training after she joined the Federation Police is currently unknown, but it is clear that the Federation has made one major augmentation to her abilities: her infusion with Metroid DNA. This infusion was done in a last-ditch attempt to save her life after she was infected with the X Parasites, and thus it was not completely known at the time what the side effects would be. As a result of the infusion, Samus gained immunity to X Parasites, as well as the ability to absorb them for energy. However, she also inherited the Metroid’s crippling weakness to cold, though this disability was negated after she absorbed the essence of the SA-X. However, Samus does not seem to have inherited the Metroids' ability to float, or to absorb bio-energy from life forms beyond the X Parasites. Equipment Power Suit Samus’ most notable piece of equipment is her Power Suit, which has become virtually synonymous with her own identity. This suit was given to her during her time with the Chozo, and was built to be fused with her mind, body, and spirit. The original Power Suit was destroyed when Samus crash-landed on Zebes after an ambush by Space Pirates, but her duel with the Ruins Test gave her a new, upgraded suit, which is able to absorb dozens of upgrades of alien origin. The Power Suit's main purpose is to protect Samus from adverse environments and enemy fire, and can be upgraded to dozens of other forms, each with its own different advantages. While some suits are stronger than others and have different abilities, they all maintain the same basic shape and usage. Zero Suit Beneath the Power Suit, Samus wears a skin-tight body suit known as the Zero Suit. Because of its negligible weight, this suit allows Samus to perform at top physical performance level, and gives some weak protection from enemy fire. She also owns an emergency pistol known as the Paralyzer, which auto-charges to fire stunning shots, though it has no lethal capacity. Samus Aran's Gunship For transportation, Samus uses her Gunship, which usually resembles her helmet. Samus has been seen in five gunships of unique design: Her first ship design was used and destroyed on her initial Zero Mission, while the second was used in her mission to Tallon IV and the mission to the Tetra Galaxy. She has had other two ships custom-made for her in Aliehs III's shipyard: Her modular ship used in the waning days of the Phazon crisis, which combined Chozo and Federation technology, and the ship for which she is best known. This gunship model was first seen in the mission to Aether, and stayed with Samus until its destruction in SR388's asteroid field. After its destruction, Samus was assigned a new ship from the Federation with an onboard AI for her investigation of the BSL. Misplacing Upgrades A curious aspect of the Metroid series is that Samus begins most games with a minimal amount of equipment, even after accumulating a sizable number of upgrades in the preceding game that would help her on subsequent missions. This is evidently a necessary gameplay mechanic needed for every title in the series, but it is unknown why this occurs so frequently in-universe, and has become a subject of humor over the years. Later games in the series have presented plot-related explanations for this: In games such as Metroid Fusion, Metroid Prime and Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, Samus starts out with a considerable amount of gear, but is quickly stripped of most of it by attacks or unfortunate incidents. Samus then regains these abilities over the course of the game, in addition to a vast array of other upgrades that expand her arsenal well beyond its initial size. Additionally, Samus seems to relinquish most of her upgrades in the end of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, explaining why she only has her basic abilities by the time of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. Gender Samus' true identity as a woman was a heavily guarded secret, and was obscured by the Power Suit’s androgynous appearance. The game manuals for Metroid in Japan used pronouns like "it" mainly because the Japanese language only has gender-neutral pronouns like aitsu. The American manuals flat-out referred to Samus as a "he", but it is unknown if this was an attempt to keep Samus' gender a secret or simply a mistranslation. Only by beating the game in under an hour could the player gain access to a secret ending where Samus would remove her Power Suit and reveal herself as a woman. It has become a tradition for Samus to do so in every Metroid game since, if the player completes the proper in-game requirements. In the 1994 Japanese Nintendo Official Guide Book for Super Metroid, a number of biography cards were published about each of the members of the development team. Hirofumi Matsuoka, one of the background artists and a designer for Samus in the original game, answered one of the questions (which asked if there were any secrets of Samus that only he knew) with the statement "Samus isn't a woman. As a matter of fact, she's actually a newhalf."13 Newhalf (ニューハーフ nyūhāfu?) is a Japanese slang term used to refer to transgender women or transvestites, roughly equivalent to the English slur "shemale".14 The sincerity of this quote has since become a source of heated debate; some fans have cited it as canonical proof of Samus being a trans woman, while others have dismissed it as a crude joke from a non-authoritative source.15 Regardless of Matsuoka's intentions, his remark has been contradicted (and likely overruled) by series co-creator Yoshio Sakamoto, who joked in 2004 that a Metroid game on the PlayStation 2 would be "as likely as Samus Aran being a newhalf."16, as well as canonical material that depicts Samus as being female as early as her toddler years. In the Super Smash Bros. series Samus is a member of the "perfect-attendance crew", a term for the twelve fighters who were playable in Super Smash Bros. and have appeared in every game to date. Her special moves are based on power-ups from the Metroid series, with her fighting moves being original melee attacks. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, she has a separate character transformation, Zero Suit Samus, who becomes a separate fighter in subsequent games. Cameos in other Nintendo titles # Famicom Wars (1988, Famicom) (Unreleased outside Japan; The Red Star commander on Donut Island is called Samasuun, and her face on the result screen is Samus' helmet.) # Tetris (1989, NES) (Cameo, appears playing the upright bass after the player wins a B-type game of level at least 9 and height at least 2.) # F-1 Race (1990, Game Boy) (Cameo, appears cheering for the player with four other women before Course 7) # Galactic Pinball (Virtual Boy) (Cameo, her ship appears in a minigame where the player must shoot oncoming Metroid enemies, similar to Space Invaders) # Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (1996, SNES) (Cameo, after Mario's party defeats Yaridovich and until Mario travels to Land's End, he may find her sleeping in the Mushroom Kingdom Castle. Also, a Samus figurine appears in the toy box of Booster's Room.) # Kirby Super Star (1996, SNES) (Cameo, when Kirby uses his stone ability he can become a Samus statue. Also, the Screw Attack icon (called the Screwball) is a treasure in the Great Cave Offense segment of the game.) # Kirby’s Dream Land 3 (1997, SNES) (Cameo, appears after level 5-2, which also contains six Metroids. If Kirby defeats them all using an Ice power, Samus will remove her helmet.) # Super Smash Bros. (1999, N64) (Playable character) # Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001, Nintendo GameCube) (Playable character) # Animal Crossing (Nintendo GameCube) (An e-Reader card called "Samus's Suit" gives the player a Power Suit to wear in the game. This is coded on the card, and not the game, however. # Kirby Super Star Ultra (2008, Nintendo DS) (Samus statue and Screw Attack, now correctly named, appear in this SNES remake.) # Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS (2014, Nintendo 3DS) (Playable character) # Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (2014, Wii U) (Playable character) # Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018, Nintendo Switch) (Playable character)